An important process in the commercial fishing industry is the scaling, gutting and cleaning of fish. There are some mechanical devices that may be available to aid in these processes. However, to avoid damage to the fish bodies, usually newly caught fish, the scaling, gutting and cleaning processing typically involves handling the fish by humans. Fish scalers that are mechanical devices used to remove scales from fish prior to cleaning are well known in the art. However all known fish scalers typically are manually operated in a reciprocating motion parallel to the surface of a fish whose scales are being removed. Scalers typically have a number of sharp protrusions or points that are raked along the outer skin of a fish in a direction opposite to the direction of growth or attachment of the scales. These points engage the external edges of the fish scales and pull or force the scale to detach from the skin of the fish.
Newly caught fish are frequently wet or slippery from having been in the water. In addition, when the fish are scaled after returning to the dock, water is sometimes used as a rinsing agent during the process of cleaning the fish, to wash away the scales and other tissue that may be removed during the cleaning process. Because the skin of the fish is slippery, it is necessary to grasp the fish firmly, and to hold it tightly, during the scaling process. If heavy duty gloves are not used, it is possible for the person doing the scaling to nick, catch, abrade, or otherwise injure the hand that is holding the fish, especially with the sharp points of the scalar.
Numerous devices have been provided for assisting in the preparation of a fish for human consumption. Among these devices have been numerous gloves with various surfaces and attachments for easily performing the necessary cleaning, scaling, and gutting operations. However, the location, configuration, positioning, and design of the glove surfaces and implements have been unsatisfactory for performing these required fish preparation operations.
It would, therefore, be advantageous to provide suitable hand protection to prevent injuries that can occur when a fish scalar inadvertently comes into contact with the hand holding the fish during a scaling operation. It would be further advantageous to provide hand protection that includes fish scaling apparatus to improve the efficiency of the fish scaling operation while protecting the hands of the wearer.